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After a disappointing start to the season, Jari-Matti Latvala staked his intent on the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) and put in a dominant drive to cross the finish line first at Rally Mexico. It was sigh of relief for the Finnish Volkswagen Polo R WRC driver and his co-driver Miikka Anttila: the pair suffered retirement in the season-opening Rally Monte-Carlo and setbacks during Rally Sweden which resulted in a 26th-place finish.

French Polo R WRC crew and reigning world champions Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia once again put in a storming drive and did all they could to temper Latvala’s indomitable spirit. However, the pair had to relinquish the win this time around, coming home on the second step of the podium. Ogier and Ingrassia won the event in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Latvala and Anttila’s win meanwhile was their Rally Mexico first, and the 16th of the pair’s careers.

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

2016 Volkswagen Polo R WRC, Rally Mexico: Latvala/Anttila

Huge challenges
Held around the city of León on 3-6 March, Rally Mexico temperatures can reach 30 °C and the event also has the season’s highest point at 2,746 metres above sea level, creating huge challenges for both drivers and their cars. It also has the longest stage: at 80km (49 miles), ‘Guanajuato’ tested both the endurance and the concentration of man and machine.

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Fresh from victory at the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship’s (WRC) opening round last month, Sébastien Ogier lifted the trophy at the series’ second event, the 12-14 February Rally Sweden. Aided by his loyal and equally talented co-driver Julien Ingrassia, Ogier finished the shortened 331.21km-long event almost 30 seconds ahead of Hyundai Motorsport’s Hayden Paddon. It was the third time the French duo had taken the Swedish spoils.

Shaky start
The 64th running of the Swedish WRC event got off to a shaky start with unusually temperate weather melting ice from the traditionally slippery stages. Insufficient snow and ice jeopardised the whole event. Soft ground saw the event cut from 21 to just 13 stages, but studded tyres were still used on the rally which is based around the town of Karlstad, west of Stockholm, and also slips into the Norwegian forests for a short time.

Despite protestations about the non-cancellation of the event, Ogier and Ingrassia once again put on a masterful display, clearing the stages of snow for the following pack. By the end of the first day, the Frenchmen were 26.9 seconds ahead of New Zealander Hayden Paddon in the new Hyundai i20 WRC, who in turn led Mads Østberg’s Ford Fiesta RS by 6.8 seconds.

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Remember the 2015 unveiling of the new Polo R WRC at Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg headquarters? The trio of driver crews and key personnel were all present and correct to pull the covers off the dark blue and white-liveried 2015 World Rally Championship challenger. No such glitz for 2016: just a press release and a photo which doesn’t give too much of the slightly different livery away.

‘Gentle evolution’
Volkswagen Motorsport claim that ‘the most successful car in WRC history is now even better’, though. With a whole host of new regulations due in 2017, few changes could be made for 2016, and the German motorsport outfit states that the 2016 Polo R WRC is a ‘gentle evolution’ with a few systematic improvements.

Those changes are largely to improve the reliability of the three-title-winning car, with the ‘2.2’ version of the second-generation Polo R WRC boasting increased stability. A strengthened front subframe is joined by similarly beefed-up rear-axle wishbones on gravel-specification cars. The 1.6-litre turbocharged 318bhp engine sees modified pistons.

Externally, we’ll have to wait until the first round of the 2016 series, the Rally Monte Carlo (21-24 January) to see the full extent of the livery changes, but the front of the new Polo R WRC sees more white areas return – as in 2013 and 2014 when the whole body shell was largely devoid of colour. Otherwise, the official photo seen here does little to expose how similar the 2016 car will appear when compared to its 2015 predecessor.

‘Fine-tuning, detailed improvements’
‘We are about to defend our world championship title for the third time in a row,’ said Volkswagen Motorsport Director Jost Capito. ‘The opposition has not been sleeping, and has modified its cars for the new season. So have we: the changes to the Polo R WRC are basically fine-tuning and detailed improvements to make the world championship-winning car even better.

‘You have to bear in mind that the regulations in the World Rally Championship only allow a few modifications within a homologation period. Thanks to this stability, it is possible to challenge for the title for several years with an existing car, making only detailed improvements. That is precisely our goal for 2016.’

The 2016 FIA World Rally Championship will include 14 rounds (one additional rally over the 2015 calendar), with China added and the Rally Great Britain moving from its traditional championship closer position to become the penultimate round – the final round in 2016 will be Rally Australia in November.

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Hot on the heels of its third consecutive World Rally Championship driver and team titles and just ahead of the 2016 Rally Monte Carlo, Volkswagen has made the rally-winning Polo R WRC available for everyone to drive – on a smartphone or mobile tablet device.

In-app track editor
An iOS version is available to download from the Apple App Store for free, and the company states that ‘the app is an entirely new interpretation of classical racing games’. How? Drivers can drive Polos on tracks that they have designed using the in-app track editor. While not exactly groundbreaking, it adds another element of interactivity.

The track editor uses photos taken on the player’s smartphone to plan individual tracks with a choice of asphalt, gravel, mud and snow surfaces. Four pre-loaded routes offer practice laps and ‘races’, with the choice of Polo, Polo GTI or Polo R WRC cars to ‘drive’. Speed boosts and drifts are part of the challenge of the game, as players must choose the right time to go sideways when they are going faster.

An Android version will be available from Google Play ‘in the near future’ according to the German company, while social media platform Facebook also allows players to challenge friends as well as share their best results. UK enthusiasts and Polo R WRC fans can download the ‘Race Anywhere’ app here: apple.co/1ZRMCvK

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Polo-based rallycross teams Marklund Motorsport and Volkswagen Team Sweden have joined forces to contest the 2016 FIA World Rallycross Championship, using their star drivers to guarantee success. The newly-formed Volkswagen RX Sweden team will field Anton Maryland and Johan Kristoffersson to pilot a pair of 600bhp Polo RX Supercars.

Championship-winning potential
It’s a return of sorts to Marklund Motorsport for Marklund, who contested the 2014 series under the wing of his father’s team – the outfit finished second in both the drivers’ and teams’ points tables the same year. Kristoffersson meanwhile shows championship-winning potential, coming third in the 2015 drivers’ championship standings.

Bosses of the new team, Jan Marklund and Tommy Kristoffersson, back the new collaboration. ‘We already discussed a merger last year, but we never got around to it,’ explained Marklund, father of Anton. ‘Now we will be added to the mix of Volkswagen’s official involvement and our joint goal for 2016 is very clear.’

‘Long-term involvement’
Kristoffersson senior – father of Johan – will be the general manager of the new team and Michael Schneider has been appointed team manager after having performed the same role at Marklund Motorsport last year: ‘Pooling our resources enables us to provide the stable platform of infrastructure and competence that is required for professional, long-term involvement.’

Jost Capito, Technical Director at Volkswagen Motorsport explained the process behind the teams joining together: ‘Volkswagen Motorsport is positive about the merger that came about as a result of the team’s initiative. A collaboration between Marklund Motorsport and Volkswagen Team Sweden will strengthen VW’s position in one of the fastest growing areas of motorsport. Combining our capabilities will create good possibilities for further success in the sport.’

‘Fighting for the championship’
Sten Forsberg, Head of Volkswagen Sweden, also welcomed the merger. ‘The competitive situation in World RX calls for creative solutions to achieve success for both Marklund Motorsport and Volkswagen Team Sweden, which we as collaborative partners strive for. With our joint effort, we are convinced that the team will be able to keep up with the pack and be fighting for the championship,’ he said.

Volkswagen RX Sweden’s new Polo RX Supercars will be built at Marklund Motorsport’s premises in Boliden, but as the season gets closer, the work will be relocated to Arvika, where Volkswagen Team Sweden is based. A separate test unit with a racing car, staff and trailer will manage the new team’s development activities.

The first round of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship is the World RX of Portugal on 15-17 April in Montalegre.

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